Defense, Elcherts lead L-B over Titans

FINDLAY – Liberty-Benton was already up two touchdowns, and was looking for one more big play before the end of the half. Seth Elchert provided it. Leading Ottawa-Glandorf 14-0 and facing a fourth down and six at the Titans' 36 with about 30 seconds left, quarterback Connor Barbara lofted the ball to the end zone, where Elchert – a star receiver committed to the University of Toledo – was double covered in the end zone. Elchert leaped in the air and brought the ball down for the touchdown. "Just a killer," said O-G coach Ken Schriner after his team lost 35-0 in the season opener in Findlay. "Deflates you, and I said right away, 'That's what you expect him to do.'" "You expect him to go up and make that play and he did," Schriner said. "Give him credit." Elchert wasn't done. Early in the fourth quarter, with the Eagles leading 28-0, Barbara threw the ball over the middle. Elchert corralled it with one hand and raced to the end zone for a 57-yard score. "That was a great catch," said Liberty-Benton coach Scott Garlock. "That's gonna be on ESPN highlights tonight, I think." Elchert finished with eight catches for 141 yards. His twin brother, Zach added three touchdowns on the ground, scoring from 1, 5 and 13 yards. Zach Elchert finished with 16 carries for 62 yards. "He runs hard all the time. You never have to question that," Garlock said of Zach. "Both those Elchert boys play hard and they're playmakers and I'm glad they're on our team." Barbara, making his first start at quarterback, was solid, completing 10 of 15 passes for 155 yards. Austin Collert was L-B's leading rusher, going for 69 yards on 11 carries. But if the offense was strong, the L-B defense was dominant. It limited O-G to just 65 total yards of offense and four first downs. CJ Barbara had a sack and an interception to lead the unit. "Rough night, man," Schriner said. "Offensively, we just don't move the ball." Caden Schroeder led the Titans with nine carries for 25 yards. Quarterback Carson Yaeger completed 5 of 16 passes for 19 yards. O-G's defense had some good moments, stopping L-B on its first several offensive drives. But the Titans offense struggled to sustain much against the Eagles D. "Our defense played great," Garlock said. "We're gonna kind of lean our hat on our defense until our offense can come around a little bit." L-B will have a rough couple weeks ahead, first traveling to Division VII state semifinalist Columbus Grove next week, and then hosting McComb in the Blanchard Valley Conference opener in Week 3. "Almost like a playoff start with these first three games," Garlock said. The Titans will host Defiance next week.